Submarine mine.



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SUBMARENE MINE.

APPLiCATlGN LkU MMLZS. IBI3.

1,159,300. y Patented Nov. 2, i915.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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STATES rArEiv'rA OFFICE.

ABRAHAM JOHANNES VAN STOCKUM, OF RIJSWIJK, NETHERLANDS.

SUBMARINE MINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 2, 1915.

Application filed March 28,1913. Serial No.. 757,418.

To all whom t 'may concern: l Be it known that I, ABRAHAM JOHANNES VAN STOCKUM, subject of the Queen of the nNetherlands, residingvat Rijswijk, Kingdom This invention relates to submarine mines of the kind adapted to be maintained in positionby an anchoring device to which the mine is connected by a cable and Vwhich are arranged to be exploded when struck by a vessel or other heavy Hoating object.

The object of the present invention is -to provide an improved mine of' this descriptionl which shall automatically remain immersed at approximately any predetermined depth in the water and shall be perfectly safe when floating at or near the surface and furthermore shall not be liable to be affected by the explosion of other mines in the immediate vicinity.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings of which-Figure 1 is a view in sectional elevation showing the mine proper and the anchoring device supporting the mine. Fig. 2 is a View in sectional elevation at right angles to the view shown in Fig. 1, and Figs. 3 and 4 are views illustrating the method of setting the mines into position.

Referring now to the drawings, the mine proper consists of a spherical shell or casing and a cylindrical portion B which is closed at its lowei end by means of a cone-shapedbase b. vThe shell -is a substantial and watertight structure containing the explosive charge, primer and igniting device, the cylindrical and conical portions B and b being of lighter construction and in open communication 'with the surrounding water.

The portions B and b of the mine serve to inclose and protect the depth regulating gear located therein, the cylindrical portion B being provided on its outer surface with a number of blades or vanes 9. A

These blades or vanes serve to eect the submersion of the mine to the predetermined depth, the currents in the water to which the mine is exposed imparting a rotary motion to the blades 9 and the casing B to which they are attached, this motion being transmitted to the depth regulating gear, as will be hereinafter explained. For this purpose the .blades or vanes may be of any suitable curved or helical formso as'to cause the mine, in the oblique positionit `assumes when floating in the current, to respond readily to the How of the water, or the blades or vanes may be hinged at their inner edges to the cylindrical portion B ofthe mine so as to open outward whenmoving in the direction.` of flow of the current and to turn inward so as to lie flat against the cylindrical portion B when advancing against the current, the position of the blades 9 being successively and automatically altered in this manner as the mine rotates. l.

At the lower end of the spherical shell or casing A vof the mine a circular aperture is provided in which a movable disk'or piston 10 is located being provided with watertight packing of any suitableA description, suchfor'instance as a rubber diaphragm inclosed' by a perforated cover 11. The piston 10.is provided with a central stem 12 which Vis adapted to slide within a sleeve or .bushing 13 rigidly connected to the coverll-l so asl to be attached to the body of the mine. Surrounding the sleeve 13 is a sleeve 14 carrying two bevel wheels 15 and 16 which are maintained in position thereon longitudinally by means of nuts but are freeA to rotate -on the sleeve 14. The sleeve 14 is connected to the stem 12 of the piston 10 by meansof a pin-21, passing through slots provided in the xed sleeve 13so as to allow the-stem 12 and the sleeve .14 a. slight amount of play in a vertical direction.

Rigidly attached to the sleeve 13 are two clutch plates 19 and 2 0, the upper plate 19 being located above the upper bevel wheel 15 and the lower plate 20 being underneath the lower bevel wheel 16. The faces of the clutch plates and the bevel wheels which are opposite to one another are provided with, radial ribs or clutch-surfaces so that either of the bevel wheels 15 or 16 may be locked a to the corresponding clutch plates 19 oif- 2O and thus to the body of the mine by an upward or downward displacement ofr the piston 10. Y

In the space between the two bevelwheels 15 and 16 a sleeve 17 attached :to the supporting frame 18" of a cable drum a is loosely mounted on the sleeve 14 and in order that the rotation of the sleeve 17 relativeQto the sleeve 14 may be as frictionless as possible'. Y

ings) maybe provided. Mounted 'on the frame 18 and engaging both the bevel wheels 15 and 16 is a third bevel ywheel 22 which is keyed to its shaft v23 and. connected to ,the

shaft 24 of the cable drum a `by a suitable reduction gear.

he gear consists of the-two equally large 4andrigidly connected wheels 25 and 59 eccentrically and rotatably mounted on the shaft 23. The Wheel 25 meshes with the stationary ring 60 provided with inwardly eX- tending teeth, while the wheel 59 meshes with the wheel 61j; the latter being rotatably mounted on' lthe shaft 23. This wheel 61 meshes also with the wheel 62, which is rigidly.connected With the wheel 63, while the s aid wheels 62 and 63 are' rotatable about a pivot connected to the supporting frame 1 8.

` The when 63 now mesheswith thewheei 64,"

connected tothe shaft 24 of the cable drum. The upper p art of the eable'l by means of which the mine is attached 'to "the anchoring deviceis wound on the drum aso that the rotation 'of the drum a causes the mine to rise or descend according to whether. the

drum is being rotated in the'one or the otheru direction.v

The Cable connecting the mine andth@ I' anchoring device passes out of the'conical.

base bthrough .a hawse-pipe 28 mounted on .the frame 18. The depth regulating 'gear above described serves tomaintain the mine atl the predetermined -depth .being operated in the following manner' by the 'rotation of themineina constant direction :-The op 'posing forces to which the piston 10 issubjected when the .mine is immersed are the tension in the cable 1 acting downward,

which is equal to the constant buoyancy of receives the 'pressure ofthe water as the' 'water -can freely enter the casing B through .the hawse pipe mounted on the frame 18.

the mine anda force acting upward due to the pressure of thewater at a depth to which the inin'e is submerged. The p ull A'of the cable is -transferred'to' the piston 10, as the whole' mechanism arranged 'in the casing B hangs on' the piston stem. This may be seen from Fig. 2 of. the drawing. The piston The water pressure must' therefore be trans` ferred to the airin the casing B, which air will becompressed, while lthe pressure .s

transferred -to the piston 10 (the- 'cover 11' of the piston belng perforated). Now the buoyancy being 'aconstant "force, whereas the pressure ofthe water increases with'thef --depth of'immersion-'it is evident that at a ton 10 Ais such. that the equilibrium between the two vforces above mentioned occurs at the de'slred' depth of immersion,-the piston nism and the drum, is rotated.

vother elfect upon it.

will move upward relative to the sleeve 13 whenever the mine is too deeply immersed. When the mine that is to say, the casings A and B,rotates, the piston 110 with piston rod .12 rotates with the mine, whereby the clutch plates 19 Aand 420 also rotate with .the piston rod. The rest ofthe mechanism i`n the casing B'hangs, as stated, on the piston rod, but

does not-rotate therewith. In case now the clutch plate 19 or 20 engages' the wheel 15 or 16, one of these wheels 15 or 16 will be rotated, so that the wheel 22, the gear mecha- When the mine is not immersed to the desired depth the lower bevel wheel 16 which -is rotatably mounted onthe sleeve will be 'engaged by the lower clutch plate 20 and thereby caused to rotate as the mine rotates,

this rotation beingtransferred by means of the bevel wheel 22 to the' cable drum a; effects the winding of the cable on the drum a so as .to 4cause the mine '.to'increase vits depth of submersion.- If, -however the mine is too deeply immersed the piston 10 'will "move -upward relative to the sleeve 13 so as to cause the upper bevel'wheel 15 to rotate with the mine, 'causing the cable drum a; to be 1 rotated in the opposite\di1ection so as to slacken the cable and allow the mine to rise nearer the surface of the water.

It willbe understood that thev force eX- l erted on one or other of the bevel wheels will in the irst instance tend to make the supporting frame 18 together with' the cable drum a rotate/ with the mine, thereby tend- ,ingto-twist the cable without' having 4any In 'order to overcome diliculty the l cable drum is arranged in its 'frame 18 -eccentrically within the parts B and 'b of the mine, as far aspossible removed from the aXisof the revolutien of the mine so that the mine tilts very decldedly away froml a vertical position and a rotating motion of the drum aand its coperating partsis prevented by the weight of the cable drum and frame 18, the center of gravity of the drum always tending to take up a position bf the laxis ofthe vmine owing to the oblique position which themine assumes owing to the influence of the eccentrically disposed weight but mainly due tothe action of the water currents.

In order to prevent the cable from fouling when it is Wound on the drum, the latter is arranged to be movable in a vlongitudinal direction along the shaft 24, the shaft and drum being connected together by a key 65 and keyway 66 as shown in IFig. 1 ofthe drawings. Surrounding the shaft 24 and secured to the frame 18 a screw-threaded sleeve 56 is provided fitting within the hol# low andinternally threaded spindle 55 'of the drum a, so that as the cable drum a rotates with its'shaft 24 the drum is caused td alter its position longitudinally to such an extent that the cable does not overlap as it is wound on the drum a, the pitch of the threads on the sleeves 55 and 56 being equal to the diameter of the cable. In order to still further insure this action, the drum a may be provided with a helicoidal groove 57, adapted to accommodate the convolution of the cable.

The length of the sleeve 56relative to the shaft 24 is so chosen that the cable can always run on or 0H the drum passing in a straight line through the hawse pipe 28 (as illustrated in Fig. l). The length of the sleevey 56 must therefore be at least as great as. the length of the drum. In practice the l sleeve is a little longer, so that the drum cannot run ofi' the sleeve.' The shaft 24 is therefore' at least twice as long as the drum and about twice as long as the sleeve 56.

Thel construction and operation of the mechanism for effecting the explosion of the mineisas follows :-On the lid of a casing gf containing the explosive charge, the primer 32 and the detonator 31, astriker 29 is mounted, pivoted'at 33 and provided with suitable guide plates 58. A rod 36 is connected at one end to the strikery 29 at a short distance above the pivot of the latter .the other end 'of the rod 36 being connected to a piston `working in a small cylinder formed .in a recess of the mine shell and rendered watertight by an india rubber disk and ring is submerged to the necessary depth the pres'- sure of the water on the piston 35 tends to force the striker 29 downward so as to bring the nipple 30 on tothe detonator 31 thus eecting the explosion of the charge.

A spring 37 is provided adaptedto abut against the inner face of the piston 35 and oppose the action of the pressure of the water to a certain extent so as to render the mains untouched, the striker is` adapted to be held in its upright position by a retaining lever or trigger 38, one extremity of which engages with the upper end of the Striker 29 the lever 38 being pivoted at 39 to two lugs attached to the base of a recess formed at the upper end of the spherical shell or casing. The lever 38 is provided with a counterweight 52 and is maintained at its normal position by means of a spring 51. The lever 38 is arrangedto be moved upward so as to release the striker 29 by a spindle 40, connected thereto and passing through the base of a recess in the mine casing..

The release of the striker 29 in the manner above described is arrangedto -be effected when the mine is struck by a heavy body by means of a set of contact levers or feelers 47 which are arranged symmetrically around the mine and pivoted thereon adjacent to the base of the mine as indicated at48 being counterbalanced by the projecting ends 50. The feelers 47 are curved so as to correspond to the shape of the mine from which they are separated by a short distance, the feelers being provided with guides 53. The upper ends of the feelers extend within the .recess at the upper end of the mine casing, a corresponding setrof small bell-,crank levers being arranged around the spindle 40 and pivotally mounted on a frame42. One arm of the bell-crank levers 44 engages with the extremities of the feelers 47 the other arms of the levers 44 engaging with the under .surface of a collar on the spindle 40 so that should anyof the feelers 47 be moved towardthe, shell of the mine the spindle 40 is raised and the striking mechanism is released in the manner already described. The spindle 40 passes through the guide 43 formed in the frame 42 and the base 4l of the recess, a water tight joint being insured by means of an india-rubber disk secured at its center portion between a collar on the spindle 40 and a nut, the outer edge of the rubber disk being secured between thebase of the recess and a flange on the frame42.' It should be observed that the feelers 47 cannot be actuated except by bodily contact as a suddenly excessive pressure in the water due to an explosion in the vicinity of the mine tends t0 force the spindle 40 downward toward the base of the recess, so that the striking mechanism cannot possibly be released or the mine exploded by counter-mining.

The arrangements for retaining or anchor- -ing the mine at the desired position are in dicated at C in the drawings and comprise a= heavy casing c of circular form having a conical central depression to accommodate the lower part of the mine, and a cylindrical portion d, around which a main cable drum b1 provided ywith cheeks is arranged, the lower portion of the cable being wound on this drum. In order to render the drum b1 readily rotatable a suitable number of guide rollers 3 are provided, the drum being retained in position by an annular plate e secured to the top of the casing by means of stud bolts and nuts 2, 21. These bolts are indicated at 2, 21 in Fig. 3, are arranged closely adjacent to one another in a circular series and form a guide for the cable passing from the rdrum '61. Adjacent to the guide bolts 21 but on the inside of the drum and arranged in a slot 5 formed in the wall (l ofthe casing isa double armed pawl 7 which is pivotally mounted on the casing and provided with a weighted arm 8. The inner surface of the drum b1 is provided `with teeth 6 so as to constitute a ratchet VWheei which mey bei engaged by either ef exerted on the cable causes the anchoring.

device to be rotated through an angle of 90 so as to bring the casing of the device into a vertical position in which the pawl 7 is dis-l engaged from the teeth 6 on the inner side of the cable drum b1.

allowing the anchoring device to descend 'as' shown in Fig.'3. On reaching the bottom the anchoring device falls over on" one or other of its flat sides and the pawl7 engages with the teeth on the cable drum b1 and thus prevents further unwinding of the cable. 'The depth regulating device then lcomes into action causing the mine to descend toits proper depth and maintainingv it at this depth of submersion in the manner already described.

It will be understood that various modi- -lcations may be made in the construction ,and arrangement of the parts herein -de scribed and illustrated without exceeding the scope of the invention.

I claim as my invention l1. `The combination in a submarine mine of mechanism for raising and lowering said mine, and means operated by lthe rotation of the mine for operating. said mechanism.

2. The combination in a submarine mineof mechanism for raising and -lowering said mine, means dependent upon the rotation of the mine for operating said mechanism, and means for automatically controlling the operation of said mechanism.

3. The combination in a submarine mine of mechanism for raising and loweringsaid lmine, means.dependent upon the rotation of the mine for operating said mechanism, and means for automatically controlling the operation `of said mechanism` in accordance with the depth of immersion of said mine.

4. The combination of a submarine mine, an anchoring device therefor, a cableconnecting the anchoring device to the mine,

'and .means dependent vupon the rotation of 'the mine for varying` the distance between the mine and said anchoring device. 5. The combination of a submarine mine,

Aan anchoring device therefor, a cable connecting said anchoring device to said mine, means operated by the rotation of said'niine The latter being., therefore free to rotate the .cable uwinds,

incasso for operating -said mechanism, and automatic means for controlling said mechanism in accordance with the depth of immersion of the mine.

6. The combination in a submarine mine of a mechanism operated by the rotation of' the mine for varying the depth ofimmersion of said mine, and means dependent upon the pressure of the water at thev depth of immersion for controlling said mechanism.-

7. The 'combination in a submarine mine of an anchoring device'therefor, a-cable connecting said anchoring device to said mine,

mechanism' for varying the length of cable between said anchoring device and said mine, means dependent upon the rotation of the mine for `'effectingy the operation of` said meehanism, and means dependent upon the pressure of the water at thevdepth vof immersion for controlling the operation of said mechanism. Y

8. The combination in a submarine mine of a buoyant member, a non-buoyant member, a cable connecting said members and means dependent upon the -rotation 'of `the buoyant'member for varying'the length4 of said cable. v

9. The combination in av submarine mine of buoyant member, a non-buoyant member,

a cable connecting said members, a number of blades or vanes located on said buoyant member for effecting the rotation thereof, and means for utilizing the rotation of saidbuoyant member to vary the depth of immersion thereof.

10. The combination in a submarine mine of a non-buoyant member, a buoyant'meniber, and means controlled by' thebuoyancy and rotation lof the latter member and by the pressure of the water at the depth of fthe immersion for controlling the distance7 between the two members.

- 11. The combination in a submarine mine of a non-buoyant member, a buoyantmember, blades or vanes located on the latter member, a cable connectmgsaid members,

mechanism operated by the rotation of said i buoyant member` for varying the length of cable separating the twomembers, and an automatic device for controlling the operation of said mec anism.

. 12. The combination in asubmarine mineof a non-buoyant member, a relatively rotatable buoyant member, a cable connecting said members, a cable drum located within said buoyant member, mechanism `for transmitting the rotation of said buoyant member to said cable drum, and a device dependent upon the depth of immersion for automatically controlling -said mechanism. 13. In a submarine mine the combination of a buoyantv member, ring mechanism therefor, means` permanently iniiuenced -by the pressure of the water at the depth of immersion for operating said firing mechanism, contact levers located on said buoyant member, and means operated by said contact levers for releasing said tiring mechamsm. e

14. The combination in a submarine mine of a buoyant member, means for automatically maintaining said memberv at a predetermined depth of immersion, a body of explosive contained Within said member, mech anism for'iring said explosive, means per- Vmanently influenced 'by the pressure of Water at the depth of immersion Jfor operating said firing mechanism, and contact levers located on said member for releasing said firing mechanism.

l5. The combination in a submarine mine of a buoyant member, a cable drum secured thereto, means dependent upon the rotation of said member for rotating said drum, mechanism for transmitting the rotation of said member to said drum, and means `de pendent upon the internal and external pressures on said member When immersed for controlling the operation of said mechanism.

16. The combination in a submarine mine of arbuoyant member, a cable drum attached to said member, means for effecting the rotation of said member When immersed in a current of Water, a device for directly transmitting the rotation of said member to said drum, a device for transmitting the rotation of said member to said drum in the reverse direction of rotation, a .movable abutment subject to the opposing internal and external pressures upon said member, and means operated b v said abutment for rendering one or other of said devices operative.

17. rlhe combination in a submarine mine of a buoyant member, a non-buoyant member, a cable drum located on said non-buoyant member, and means dependent upon the angular disposition of said non-buoyant member for controlling the operation of said cable drum,

18. The combination in a submarine' mine of a buoyant member, an anchoring device .therefor of substantially disk-like form, a

cable drum located in said anchoring device, and means for preventing the rotation of said cable drum when the axis of the anchoring device is substantially vertical.

19. The combination in a submarine mine of a buoyant member, a non-buoyant memf ber, a cable connecting said members, means operated by the rotation of said buoyant member for Varying the length of cable separating the two members, and means for l preventing the rotation of said cable.

20. In a submarine mine the combination With a rotatable buoyant member, an anchoringfdevice therefor, a gearing element gconnected to said rotatable buoyant member,

a second gearing element pivotally mounted upon said buoyant member, a cable drum rotated by -said second gearing element, and means dependent upon gravity for maintaining the axes of sai-d.I cable drum and of the second gearing elementstationary relative to'said buoyant member.

21. The combination in a submarine mine of a .buoyant member, an anchoring device therefor, means operated by the rotation of luenced by the pressure of thewater at the l depth of immersion; a device for arresting the operation'of said liring mechanism, contact levers on the outside of said member for releasing said arresting device, and means operated by excessive pressure of the Water for maintaining said arresting device operative. Y

In testimony whereof Irhave hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing Wit- ABRAHAM Y.JOHANNES mi s rociuni.

Witnesses:

THoMs H. VERHAVE, D. KLEIJN. 

